12 Fashion Terms That Every Fashionista Should Know

Clothes worn by both men and women because they’re gender-neutral are called androgynous. It comes from the Latin word “androgyne.”    It refers to physical characteristics that mix male and female features. One way of enhancing the androgynous look is by wearing loose clothing that brings less attention to your body shape. Women can wear loose trousers and men can wear loose tops.

Applique refers to joining and attaching fabrics on top of a different fashion fabric that acts as a background. It’s a great way to add texture and dimension to a fashion fabric and playful colours that can bring your look to life. Applique started as a way to fix clothes.

Atelier comes from the French word for a studio or a workshop, that, fashion designers use to bring their ideas to life.

This workspace can be used by a solo designer or a design team working together for a fashion label.

A capsule collection is when a fashion designer isn’t making clothes focused on standing out on the runway. Instead, they’re more vested in fewer but stronger looks that communicate their vision instead of showing an entire collection.

Capsule collections allow fashion designers to partner with big fashion brands plus experiment creatively and still be commercially viable.

A fashion collection is also a representation of a fashion designers’ fashion line but, it has more pieces than the capsule collection. As fashion designers present their clothes on the runway, they can unleash their full creativity and have fun on the runway.

Fast fashion is fashion garments created quickly because they mimic fashion trends but with lower quality, synthetic fabrics.

The public can buy these items at a more affordable price. Nevertheless, these fashion garments usually don’t last long.

Haute Couture has French roots and translates to high dressmaking or high fashion.

A high couture garment is usually one fashion item made for a discerning fashion client with sophisticated taste. This fashion client attends several fittings so that the fashion designer can make a garment that fits them like a glove.

The word Kimono has Japanese roots, and it refers to traditional clothes.

Kimonos inspire fresh and modern-day looks like Kimono inspired dresses and loose, long flowing Kimono tops worn on top of vests. Alternatively, there are trendy Ankara Kimono jackets that you can easily match with other fashion items.

A fashion lookbook is a catalogue of fashion items worn by models shared with fashion buyers and fashion stores.

It lets fashion designers communicate about their brand in a creative style. It’s also great for marketing purposes. Lookbooks can be digital and interactive on websites run by fashion brands.

A mood board can be a digital or a physical one that shows a fashion designers’ aesthetic style.

It can include picture cut-outs, fabrics, colour swatches and different textures. It helps designers in the early creative design process before making fashion garments

Monochromatic is fashion items with similar colours but in different shades. Alternatively, it’s one colour in different textures.

This fashion style is perfect for fashionistas that love a clean and minimal look. It’s versatile and suited for high-end events or a casual outing with friends.

Pret-A-Porter translates into ready to wear from French to English. It’s less expensive than haute couture but still made by fashion designers.

Alternatively, it can also refer to fashion labels that make their clothes in a factory and, these are made for mass consumption by customers. Some international fashion labels like Gucci make haute couture clothes plus pret-a-porter clothing options.